One For the Money
by invinciblebears
Summary: "I don't know how you get over someone as dangerous, tainted and flawed as you." Caroline's thoughts after one Hybrids death. Oneshot. Klaroline, post season 3 finale.


You said I was the most exotic flower  
Holding me close in our final hour

I don't know how you convince them and get them, boy  
I don't know what you do, but you're unbelievable  
I don't know how you get over, get over  
Someone as dangerous, tainted and flawed as you

It isn't that hard boy, to like you _or even love you_  
I will follow you down down down,  
Why? Cause you're unbelievable  
So if you're going crazy just grab me and take me  
I would follow you down down down, anywhere anywhere  
-_Million Dollar Man, Lana Del Rey_.

* * *

Caroline knew what she should do, now that all the dust had settled over Elena's new vampirism and Klaus' death. The blonde should leave town, just like she and Tyler had originally planned. She could start her life at last, away from Mystic Falls and everyone she's known since birth.

The thing is that the Forbes girl had always liked living in such a small town. It was comforting to be able to walk through the streets of downtown and know that you're perfectly safe; she liked waving to the mailman and knowing him by first name, as well as his mother's name. The vampire was a small town girl at heart, and while she knew that she'd be run from town eventually—she'd hoped that it would be in at least ten years from then.

The blonde had a million reasons on her checklist as to why she should leave town, and yet she sat upon the comforter in her room since childhood instead. Tears escaped her, as she'd cried them all out following Tyler's death. Instead, she sat in shock, unsure what to do to pass the time.

A mere couple hours had passed since the events took place with Klaus' and Tyler's deaths. Caroline was heartbroken, but moreover she was surprised at ache that had settled upon her heart. It wasn't for her werewolf, but instead the Original who had attempted time and time again to whoo the girl.

If the blonde was being honest with herself, she'd admit that on the days when Tyler was breaking his sire bond, she was daydreaming about a fairytale land where she runs off with Klaus. Klaus! The villain! The teenage vampire knew that she was gorgeous, but she never pegged herself as the 'villainous trophy wife' sort. They were usually gorgeous in a creepy way, something that the girl most definitely was _not._

As much as she claimed otherwise, in his death the blonde was honest to herself when she admitted that Klaus had never been a creep, either. He was more charming than even he probably knew, and the woman couldn't help but to smile at his memory. He reminded the girl of a mischievous child, always acting on his impulses without the slightest worry of consequences. She always enjoyed that about him, how he carried himself as if he were a free man.

In reality, he was imprisoned in his own loneliness. She could see that about him, see into his soul; when the blonde caught a glimpse of that loneliness, the girl couldn't stop her thoughts from drifting to what her life would be like if she helped him carry the burden of a thousand years. He'd asked her in so many words at the decade dance, also speaking that she wasn't ready to accept his offer.

They'd both known that he was right, and although the woman scoffed at the words on the outside, she had known them to be true in her subconscious. That she would eventually find her way to the mysterious and dangerous hybrid; that she would eventually ask him to show her the world.

The two likely had nothing in common, the teenager reasoned with herself as she sniffed particularly loudly after the incident. He had no moral compass, and she was a Vampire Barbie, for Christ sakes! Still, with all the talk of killing Klaus throughout the doppelganger business, Caroline hadn't thought about how she'd feel if he was actually gone. No longer around to draw her romantic pictures and gaze at her as if she was the last woman alive… or, undead. The blonde was startled to find hollowness in her chest, as if her heart went and died along with him.

She had even fantasized about living in a castle with hybrid minions running around. What kind of screwed up person would live alongside an evil dictator in the making? Before his death, she refused to succumb to him on principle, and her devotion to Tyler.

So when had her devotion shifted, and how come no one alerted the blonde first?

She screamed in frustration, grabbing the lamp on her bedside table rather roughly and smashing it against the crème wall. The destruction felt good to release, making the girl heave deeply from her spot in her bed. She felt as if she was going insane, unsure whether to feel joy, sorrow, heartbreak or nothing at all.

This reaction was irrational, was it not? Klaus was the bad guy. The bad guy gets killed, and everyone is happy. That's how life work's. Suddenly, Caroline found herself thrust onto the dark side without her consent, searching for her British hybrid like a helpless puppy.

Caroline knew that she had to leave Mystic Falls behind forever. Frankly, though, that was a problem, because leaving Mystic Falls would also mean leaving the memories that she stored away for a rainy day. The time's when the Mikaelson was being genuine, talking about art or the world. The time's when she was so wrapped up in his intense gaze that it felt warm, as if he was a blanket on a cold night.

Lana Del Rey echoed through the cheap radio perched on her windowsill, her words matching the vampire's emotions perfectly. _"I don't know how you get over someone as dangerous, tainted and flawed as you._"

She finally let the floodgates open, spilling tears over the rim of her baby blue eyes. The vampire had promised herself that she wouldn't cry, for her own pride, but it seemed that her pride didn't mean much.

The blonde had lost Klaus, Tyler, Elena and Alaric all in the same night; for once, in the shaded light of her childhood home, the woman allowed herself to breakdown.

One could only be strong for so long, after all. _"I would follow you down down down, anywhere anywhere._" Lana echoed back at her with emotion, mirroring her newfound feelings for the dead hybrid.

* * *

Ehh, I'm having slight writers block with Phoenix Rising, so I thought I'd give you guys a short lil oneshot to tide you over. I'm currently working on a million projects: two more oneshots, and another story on top of the other two I already have going. Shakin' my head, as well.

This idea hit me while listening to my main inspiration, Lana Del Rey. The description and lyrics at the top all belong to her. She's lovely; check her out, if you haven't. I don't really like this, I kinda rushed the plot, and I wrote it at like… 1 in the morning. But. Whatever.


End file.
